The Same Moonlight
by cloudscenexd
Summary: When death comes to those in one plane of existence, life begins in another. Violet never wanted the life she was given, and yet when she is made Harbinger of Heartwood's northern fortress in the Snowy Sands, she must gather all her strength not to commit the dark deeds a Harbinger must make while also surviving the repercussions during a coming war. Based on Souls of the Frontier.
1. Memory One- Dancing with Guns

It was extremely odd you know. Being the only person in here with a personal reason as to why I was only able to speak with my hands, but was also blessed with the ability to hear still. I don't feel like giving you the in depth story to it all, but I can tell you that when I met Natalia, I was genuinely surprised.  
A friend of mine introduced her to me when I told him that I couldn't tell him a lot of problems about my past.  
At first, I thought she was a dirty liar. When I saw her face the first time when we had "spoken" over my friend Josephine's computer, she was extremely shy, and was so bad with her sign that I wanted to just start rubbing the underside of my chin at her and call her a liar. But it wasn't because she was some liar. In flesh and blood, which I had neglected to register at the time, she was one and the same as me. We spoke more frequently as time went on over the break from school. We got so close that while I had early on learnt that she was born with damaged vocal cords, she was also chronically anxious. She desperately wanted to catch the attention of the world with her cute and charming looks and amazing drawings and penmanship, but she lacked the intestinal fortitude to go out and claim territory in some form of media for herself.  
Truth be told it became evident as to why my old friend ended up telling me about Natalia. She was orphaned at a young age, and grew up moving from household to household, never settling down as her anxiety attacks and quiet personality, mixed with her lack of ability to speak, began to distance her from the families that adopted her.  
But one night stood out the most to me, during one of our fifteen minute sign sessions. She entered the video channel balling, tears streaming down her cheeks as her shoulders sagged.  
She told me through the most utterly painful sign ( sorry Natters XP) that she had been strong for so long, and that all she wanted to do was rest.  
At first, I jumped to conclusions, snapping forward in a flurry of angry hand motions that were literally a blur to her side of the session. After I slowly went back over everything, she wept harder.  
["I did not mean an eternal rest."]  
That same night I comforted and consoled her, she broke free from most of her anxiety. Sure she was still afraid, and shrunk back when people intimidated her, but she was still a sturdy girl, none the less.  
She taught me a lesson as well. I had to take care of myself before I took care of others. I dropped fanfictions entirely. I literally went from, 'just starting to gain fans' to - 'nobodies home'.  
True now, Natters is retyping and correcting all of this, but the story is still ours- directed by me and orchestrated by her finishing writings. She is truly my "shero".

(-)

Reclining in the chair, I gave the chilly air of my room a deep breath, before leaning forward again, and looking at the computer.  
_She's late..._ Thinking quietly to myself, I felt my heart beat pick up. _What if she got hurt? Maybe I should message Grey to see if she's alright...__  
_A second later, as I was just about to rise and pace the room like a crazed motherly figure, a caller icon popped up, and the smooth faced brunette with a light eyeliner on and a shy smile appeared, holding a cat up to the picture.  
I slapped the enter key, and motioned a hello to an empty screen.  
_What the heck?_ Leaning forward as close as I possibly could without JAMMING my face to the screen, I looked hard at the monitor. The room beyond Natalia's empty seat was mostly bare, the white walls void of the band posters that used to litter the vast expands that was her dry wall.  
_Natalia?__  
_Something wasn't right; the air felt heavy in my room and the lights seemed to dim... I bit my lip and fear fitted me most as the overall ambiance of the situation grew sinister and mysterious. A small dot suddenly appeared on my screen, almost like a laser pointer was hitting the camera, but not producing he same glare you would expect.  
Backing up in my seat slowly, I rose. I wasn't quick enough. Maybe. Maybe if I had just flung my laptop against the nearby wall, none of what was about to happen would have taken place.

"Wwwrrraawwww!" Natalia's single, rather iconic word made me screech in fear, and I reeled back, swinging my chair backwards and ramming into the carpeted floor of my room.  
Flying to my feet, tears teasing my eyes as I raised my hand, I signed angrily.  
["What the hell, Natalia! Do not do that!"]  
Giggling, she slumped in her seat, and I sighed. Pulling my chair upright, I gave her a tired look as she replied to me.  
[" Why are you angry? I am only kidding."]  
["... all right. How has the day been going for you?"]  
I watched my friend raise her hands to reply, a smile on her face. But an instant after she read my sign, her face flickered as if some sort of pain came over her, and her posture went from perfect to poor.  
["Everything is alright."]  
["..."] With my hands in sight of the camera, I froze.  
How do I... Reply to her?  
["Natters?"]  
She looked up at me, her head tilted down and her bangs falling almost over her eye.  
["...yes..."] Hesitating, she signed slowly, frowning.  
I opened my mouth as if to speak, but ended up shaking my head.  
["You know you are a horrible liar, right."]  
We began ending our sentences not as questions, and because of that, the whole ambiance of the video call darkened quickly.  
["Hey..."] Natalia sighed after an uncomfortable minute of silence. Her small hands got harder to spot after her sweatshirt's sleeves began to clump down by her wrists. ["Can you - k to Ottawa- I - help -for- sake- of sanity."]  
Raising my hands up in alarm at her sudden flurry of sign, I almost made a frown from my expressionless face- almost said, 'hold on, what?'  
Sadly, Natalia visibly and forcefully brought her fist down on the keyboard, cutting off the video feed, and dropping the call.  
Jumping as I was startled, my mind flashed with the images of Nat's last facial expressions.  
Her smile... was contorted. Her eyes saddening.  
_My god, Natters_. I thought fearfully, standing up from my set so quickly it fell back. _What have you gotten into this time_.

(-)

The air was cold as I trudged on through the snow, looking forward with a rather determined face. The drive to the Ontario side was long, and I lost the first day of my precious weekend.  
Not that I am doing much anyway...  
Sighing into my hands, I kept them cuffed over my mouth, as my scarf was currently not level with my nose, but in my backpack.  
The sidewalk of Ottawa was coated in freshly falling snow coming from a rather bright, gray sky. The clouds overhead were indeed not as thick as yesterday.  
_Maybe that's a sign that brighter days are to come?__  
_My mouth twitched into a smirk, and my inner persona began laughing.  
_You're not a psychic, Lunacora! And even than..._  
Shaking myself from thinking rather pessimistically again, i moved onward, weaving around the slow moving walkers on the street.  
_There aren't a lot of people walking about today..._  
Snow crunching lightly underfoot, i turned at a corner, and spotted my target; a library that me and a few of our other friends had once met. Now it was just a stinging reminder of the fallout that we had had. Shaking my head to rid the coming thoughts of the past, I stepped inside the warm building.  
The lone librarian, a rather young but over worked man, shuttling a cart of books down the aisles, paid me no attention as he disappeared to complete his work. I looked around the warm lobby, trying to find the brunette I had come to love.  
Where are you at?  
A crack and a snap made me leap away from the door leading outside. Spinning around and stumbling, I turned. There was somebody outside…

_Shooting someone!?_

Rushing towards the door, I looked through the thick glass. The sounds were getting closer. Backing away somewhat slowly, I ducked behind a shelf of books.

_What is that sound?_

The noise didn't die, and the increase of the pops sent sounds of screaming down the streets. Fear lanced up my spine, and a stabbing pain hit my gut.

_W-…_

"Luna?" A soft voice made me jump, and I hit my head on the cold metal as my heart throbbed.

Gasping, I spun, and huffed emotionally.

Natalia was alright, standing slightly behind the speaker. My anger softened, as did my fears. The boys standing in front of her were twins, Nic and Phill, two of Natalia's friends. Both were a bit alarmed, and the least quiet of the two, Nic, stepped towards the door.

"What's going on out there?"

["How the hell should I know?"]

"Sorry, but-." The sound of exploding glass made us all jump, and the screams grew. I spun to the sound of running footsteps, and saw the librarian turn the corner. I raised my hands to sign to him; to warn him of the possible dangers the lay in the opening of the lobby. He began to turn his head towards me, just as his eyes widened. He jerked back as red sprayed the air in front of his chest. The body hit the floor heavy, creating a sickening thud that would forever scar my thoughts and haunt my dreams to come.

I knew what it felt like to be dead. Being in a coma for half a year was not as fun as anyone would think, but Natalia, Nic, and Phill…

Jumping from behind the bookshelves, I got my first glimpse of the killers.

Thugs with an assortment of goods and gun strapped to themselves had weapons pointed right at us. My own fear was what drove me on.

"GET THE FUCK DOWN!"

My hands shook only a little as I remained standing. Natalia backed away as I pushed Phill towards the shelves.

_Oh would I give to talk…_

"DID YOU HEAR ME?!"

"She can't speak ma-." Blood hit the side of my face, red staining my dyed teal hair, and I jumped a little as the sound scared me half to death. Looking down, Nic was collapsed, staring into the void…

Gasping, I fell to my knees. Sobbing, tears burned my eyes and screams of sorrow scratched my dry throat.

_No! NO!_

Pounding the floor beside him, I screamed again. Swinging my head around in fury, I glared at the gun barrel staring down at me.

"I asked you a fucking question."

I sighed, closing my eyes.

_Goddammit._

(-)

Natalia couldn't breathe. Her heart was about to burst. Lunacora was…

All she could do was stare at the body. This was all her fault, in her eyes. Her friends were dead because of her.

"She shoulda said something."

"You dumb ass, that kid was talkin' an' you shot his ass!"

"Well, so-ree for bein' a little trigger happy! We almost got what we need-."

"We NEED hostages!"

Phill pushed her gently. "Go."

"…"

"Get away from here."

"…" She could only stare. Her legs wouldn't move for her. Her arms were latched on to the necklace, the cross that she had convinced herself that would _always _protect her.

"Luna's gone. Nic is gone. Go…" The boy was finished speaking. There was nothing left to say. When he took his first step towards the bickering group of killers, Natalia finally snapped from her trance. Her breathing went wild, and she clamped her hand over her mouth to keep from screeching.

_Phill!_

She watched him glance back once, and she staggered back.

_Go…_

Stumbling backwards, Natalia watched Phill catch the attention of the men.

"Hey kid, stay where you are. KID. I'm warnen ya-." A heavy masculine growl made her flinch, and the last Natalia saw of her friend Phill was when he lunged for a gun.

The staircase echoed as she flew up the steps.

(-)

The sounds of pursuit made her only move faster up the stairs, and Natalia cried, tears streaming down her face. She had to get away. Phill distracted them for her, so she could escape…

_No…no…no…no…_

She didn't take notice to the floor numbers, and only realized there was nowhere left to go when she ran into a dead end and a stairwell leading up to the rooftop door. There was no way back down, she could see them nearing the floor below her.

Gasping for breath, her throat enflamed by bile and dry air intake, she pushed through the door, stumbling into the darkening snow covered rooftop of the library. Staggering forward towards the obvious ledge, she sniffed and sobbed, trying to regain her emotions and shattered thoughts. Eyes wild, she saw the ski masked men stumble through the sudden snow, pointing towards her.

"Come'r girly!" One, with a gruff voice, the "trigger happy" one, took aim with his gun.

Natalia choked another scream, before spinning to the ledge. An almost empty alley way lay below. Looking back, they were making their way towards her. Spinning, she gasped for breath. Fighting her instincts, she clambered onto the ledge.

"Now don't there do that, lil' girly."

"Yeah, yea lil' girl. Your too lil to die yah know."

Natalia sniffed, stepping back. Wobbling, she swung her arms about to maintain her balance. Looking back, the snow she knocked off the ledge went down like a rock, and hit the ground with a splatter. Looking back, the man in the lead got close. Too close.

He lunged for her leg. So she jumped.

Gravity pulled her back and under, and she didn't fight the pull. Tumbling felt like ages, and slowly, but surely, the open expanse of grey clouds faded as the alley walls closed around her like a maw of malevolent darkness.

(+++)

Violet opened her eyes, gasping for breath for the first time, in the world of minecraftia, and cried. Though, for some odd reason, it felt like it wasn't because she spawned. It was because of something she just could not ever again remember.


	2. Memory Two- Moonlight

The night was rather dreary, the winds of autumn picking up and sending a chill over the metropolis. At one point, this place would be called Front Line City, but now it is called, 'Heartwood'. Heartwood was once a place controlled by a group called the Federal Union. Through the daring acts of a man named Mystic, and his soldiers, he managed to clear the city of children of its treacherous secrets. The organization so hell bent on learning everything it could about the world through dark acts soon collapsed as the Temple, a holy origination of knights and clerics, marched on their front door, and slaughtered all who opposed them.  
Front Line City became Heartwood as the Temple pulled what little of their forces that lived from the barren front lines filled with new, vicious and sinister mobs.  
Time moved on, quickly, and the rather hasty, yet necessary acts of the Temple were almost forgotten. The shame died away with the great legends that made them. Grey the Paladin, Dominik, knight of Eriasisa, Texas, luminary of the Nether and Aether.  
Though many have forgotten what they had done, one group still remains true to the image and protection of their deeds. The Guild that safeguards this information has a name to be remembered by.  
The Grey Clouds.

Violet remained crouched. The wind picked up slightly, throwing dust around her and making the grass rustle in the glow of the moonlight. She gave a tiny smile, holding her Scythe in a tight grip.  
["It's a nice night out, isn't it?"] She sighed, in sync with the boy close by her.  
"It is."  
They stared down at the deer grazing lazily on the grass by a large redwood tree. Violet inched forward again, each time that the buck moved, trying to cover her sound and stay out of sight. Her one piece, rather gothic Lolita styled dress fluttered around her knees as she flicked brown bangs from her eyes. The animal jerked up as she got within four blocks of it.  
Without making a single noise, Violet stood up, pulled back her Scythe, bracing her foot against something on the floor, possible a rock. Taking a deep breath, she swiped forward with the Iron weapon, and flinched as it leapt just far enough to have its side slashed. The deer took off into the trees.  
Not bothering to waste words, Violet only glanced back to her companion. Kenavokuro Lux, or Kuro for short, nodded off to the left, and disappeared into darkness. Launching herself through the bushes and branches without any scratches thanks to her dresses Protection II Enchantment, she pursued the creature, intent on finally being able to eat. Sliding through another gap in the tree line, able to see thanks to the moonlight above, Violet leapt and rolled to her feet as the Forest Biome opened up to a clear field.  
"…" Sliding to a near stop, flat bottomed booties slipping under dew coated grasses, the figure scanned the rolling hills quickly. Violet took off after the deer, spotting it thunder over a hill and out of sight. Dashing forward as fast as possible, she began to pant, fogged breath rolling up into her eyesight.  
Hayden's sudden appearance almost startled her, if she hadn't been expecting it.  
["Did you see it?"] She breathed, glancing at his pale form in the moonlight, vanilla white hair practically glowing. She could see the red streaks in his hair as well; permanent and twisting in his side swept bangs much like hers, though not actually covering his eye. She only hoped he could read her sign well enough in the low light.  
"I followed the blood." His normally thought dull voice made her loose herself a moment. The thought of the hunt flitted from her mind and she felt her heart rate pick up, slow at first, before beating again at its hammering pace. She shook her head, and forced her thoughts to go back to feeding her friends.  
They raced faster, no fear of the night, no fear of attack. Bounding up over the grasses of the top hill, Violet jumped to gain a little more speed on the descent. She slid to a halt as the hills became a rolling forest again.  
No… The trail went cold, and the wind picked up slightly, taking strands of her hair and letting it float about in the wind. The trail died away with the moonlight again. Her heart hurt as her stomach growled in protest.  
"…" Kuro huffed, a cloud of breath slipping through his scarf and rolling into nothing. "We should head home. I'm sure we can find some fish along the way."  
The feeling of doubt and failure replaced her hunting spirit, but the adrenaline remained to nag on her nerves. Sighing only once, she shook her head angrily. Stepping towards the dark forests entrance, she rested her scythe on her shoulder. The metal hummed against her clothed shoulder, and she nervously grabbed a ribbon attached to her dress, and twirled it between her thumb and forefinger.  
Not bothering to sign in general, Violet stooped into a bit of a crouch, and snuck into the darkness.  
Close behind her, she could feel her companion keeping pace behind her.  
"I see the blood; I will take the lead." Kuro stepped past her as she slowed, and Violet tensed a bit as he brushed her arm.

The boy moved quickly leading them farther ahead, trying to keep the trail. Before long, they emerged from the edge of the thickly grown trees out on the other side of the Jungle of Cocoa, which hugged the Northern Desert. The sands spread out before them.  
Confusion set Violet in motion, and she stepped forward, catching his attention as she signed to him in the Common language Humans spoke.  
["Why are we back here? I thought that we were following the trail the deer left?"]  
Kuro looked down to the girl as she narrowed her eyes. "I am, but it ends here. See?"  
Pointing into the darkest patch of sand under a rising hill, Violet's gaze followed, until she finally spotted blood spots. Moving out of the wind, she followed the droplets that fused with the grainy substance, until I suddenly stopped, right at the base of the sand dune.  
This doesn't make sense.  
Shaking her head, Violet furrowed her brow. Looking around, she watched Kuro pace around farther back, studying the ground intensively. She studied him a moment, a hand on her chest. His dark clothing camouflaged him in the night darkness, if his pale skin hadn't shone in the moonlight just as hers did. The cloak he wore was plain and simple, with little detail, and his combat boots were made of normal leather. In person, at first, Violet had thought of him as a horrible bodyguard. But back then, she thought she wouldn't need one.

It had been nearly a month since her first time in Heartwood. The City was the heart of the peninsula's independent Kingdom, and was the central hub were the races met for the first time in political history.  
After the death of the Enderdragon and Jeb the Demon, at the hands of an unknown party of vigilantes, the magical boarders that had once sealed the Humans inside with the two most powerful entities known to man fell. And on the other side lay sea and three giant continents, all with humanoids and creatures long forgotten by the Humans.  
North of the topmost Human continent, Eriasisa laid the Azure Straits; land of the ever stubborn and highborn to their lesser kinsmen races.  
Towards the west across from the Human's mainland continent, Heathfire, the Dwarves, just as tall on average as their Human-kin, lived in their towers and cities of titanium and mythril; the land called Te'kit. Apart of Te'kit, lining it's northwestern isles, the Orcish people; equal to the Humans in all ways except for increased strength, noticeably green hued skin, and fangs that varied in size, mined and sold their materials, and brought new weapons and smithing to the Humans almost as soon as the magical wall was withdraw.  
And finally, to the south, where the Human continent Sacred lay, the Alen reigned. Their towers and islands that were anchored to the clouds, by magic, flew their giant Eagles about.  
Heartwood laid in Eriasis, just on the edge by the Sea of Ghosts, and was the place where the Elves first landed their magnificently crafted and designed ships. At first the Humans were confused.  
After years of councils and even more years of alliances, the Humans regained their place among the races of Minecraftia.  
And because of their arrogant and stubborn was the Elves tried to keep their reign over the Humans knowledge tight.  
But the Orcs and Alen had long since remembered the bonds of kinsman-ship and shared with the Humans the true knowledge the Elves had tried so hard to hide; the Humans had been sealed inside of magical walls WITH the dragon, because of the Elves' High Council's biased opinion on keeping their own people safe.  
War was on the minds of all the races until the united Humans were rallied and pulled under control of a man by the name of Desmond. His act kept the Humans from war and was able to convince the Elves they would be forgiven.  
In exchange, they were to be given the knowledge of true magic.  
By this time, magic was limited to the Humans within the ethereal walls the Elves had boxed their Human-kin in. The magic emitting from the walls were made to negate any means of true magic from being cast; the ability to tap into the magical planes was cut off except by one way, that being enchantment.  
As soon as the walls fell and the races finally met together in the Humans Capital of the United Knights, later known as the Gem of the Heart, mages were running rampant because of the lack of control Desmond's new High Sages showed while taking in students.  
Twenty years passed since the time of the "Falling Walls", and Desmond ordered the capture or slaughter of all non-registered mages.  
It was thirty seven when Desmond finally managed to gain some control over magic. It was at that time the United Knights, the capitol of all the Human Kingdoms at that time, was attacked by a group of renegade mages. They were mad with power, and allowed Demons from the other plane into their minds and bodies to gain more magical power. They became what is known as Ghouls, angry, nearly mindless beings driven on by lust and hatred. Desmond and his army managed to push them back and the Nether Knights, trained to contain and kill mages and magical beings, went further as they slaughtered every last one of the mages that had attacked.  
The Human Kingdoms under Desmond were shaken, and half of Sacred broke away, alliances and all with Desmond, and formed a group called the Grey Clouds. Their specialized armies, called Dragoons, were controlled mages able to jump inhuman heights, and harness the elemental powers of wind, lightning, air, and parts of nature. These forces trained with the Ariel Calvary of the Alen's Flight.  
The seceded Kingdoms hit the United Knights hard, and Desmond called to the Dwarves for help.  
With their knowledge, much greater than Elves on a normal scale, only held back by their Human-like age, they shared with Desmond the ways of light and holiness.  
That was how the Temple of Light, a small, secluded and independent Fortress hidden at the northeastern base of Heathfire's Marble Spires were able to train and show their true Paladins and Clerics. The Paladins were valiant knights who trained years to learn holy magic on top of their warrior skills; were what Human children dreamt of becoming. The Clerics were much larger in number as only a chosen few were picked to become Paladins. They were warriors usually less adept at combat and greater in the magical arts. The Temple Priests went to the Ruby Palace where Desmond ruled, and trained a batch of his forces in the holy arts. The Nether Knights became the Aether Knights, and his simple forces became Knights of the Fire.  
That attack and the withdrawn Kingdoms let the mages have the idea that his forces were weakened because of the Ghouls. More and more illegal mages came to make secret societies within Kingdoms and the killing the rampant Ghouls created sparked something within the remaining Kingdoms with the United Knights. Aether Knights were stationed in all the places Desmond controlled. The Nether Knights that had been released because of their vicious acts were recalled, the ones that could be found at least. Demons that controlled the earliest Ghouls became stronger.  
Within forty years of the Falling Walls, the stronger Ghouls became known as Wraiths. They were terrifying and almost unrivaled in the art of magic. The demons within the Human hosts were smarter, wiser, and older. They were always lusting for more and could not be contained within a single host without draining the life of another being of equal life; animals and insects did not count.  
Desmond pleaded for the Temples assistance again; the Temple gifted them their most elite teacher and warrior.  
A Harbinger.  
Harken was a scythe wielder who had gone to the Moonlitfields, a sacred area which the Elves protected but never entered. He came back a little less Human.  
Harken was gifted with an ability which he could give to others much like one of the old and extinct creatures the Humans slaughtered off. But only seven percent of all Humans he gave his gift had all the same powers and abilities he did. The rest were lesser in power, and he called them Reapers. At the time he first became a Harbinger, he was ecstatic. A power only he knew most of, with abilities and over a hundred different combat styles that were woven with the Scythe and Glaive; he was able to use his victim's blood and SOUL to become stronger.  
He had a daughter. And her name was Violet. She was a mere child when he had become a harbinger, a baby. And as Harken made his circle of lesser but just as strong, yet less experienced, Harbingers and stationed one at each notable Kingdom of the United Knights, with a Calvary of Reapers under their control, Violet was left alone. She was silent, a scared and muted girl that was unable to speak because of a deformity and mis-growth of her vocal cords. She had no friends. No mother. And as Harken slowly became more obsessed with hunting down every last Wraith and Ghoul, she was fatherless.  
When fifty seven years passed after the wall had fallen, Violet turned seventeen. She was a noble lady of the Rainlands in Eastern Eriasis when a messenger delivered a message to her from her father.  
VIOLET, I HAVE CHOSEN YOU FOR A SPECIAL GIFT... YOUR EIGHTEENTH BIRTHDAY PRESENT... COME TO ME IN HEARTWOOD WITH THE SCYTHE I KEEP IN THE VELVET CASE BY MY BED.  
So she had traveled towards Heartwood with a unit of Aether Knights guarding her. Through bandit attacks she defended herself with the Scythe her father had left for her, and through heavy northern rainstorms she quieted the horses as the caravan hide under the large Ciderwood Trees of the nearby Seafoam Stretch, a forest that spanned hundreds of miles across the northern top of Eriasis.  
Almost a month of travel, Violet finally met her Father for the first time in almost five years. It was also there she was given the gift from her very Father. As if fate had planned it, she had fallen asleep like all undergoing the transformation. She could have become a Reaper.  
She woke as a Harbinger.

"Harbinger? MADAME." Kuro's stern voice snapped her from her trance, and the girl flinched as his voice was too close to her ear.  
Stepping back after playfully nudging him in the ribs, she signed. ["Sorry. My mind wanders when I get tired."]  
"It's alright. Now than, the trail, it all just disappears. The deer couldn't have vanished."  
["It is not likely that Alen's would even be three continents north. As much as they favor us as their closest in kin, they do not seem to want to be caught in the affairs in the conflict between Desmond and his fight against the Wraiths and Ghouls."]  
Kuro nodded once, looking at the sand inventively as he crouched in front of her. The desert winds attacked the hem of Violet's dress, and she snatched at it, keeping it from floating up in the billowing airstream flowing around them. The sand picked up a little, but Violet ignored it as Kuro stood back upright. His complete heterochromatic eyes cut clearly through the night, as he looked at her, and the right, sapphire iris and left, amber coloured iris painfully reminded her of her own heterochromia. The deep blue green eyes she once had changed much like it did for all Reapers and the few Harbingers. She had central hetrochromia, the iris starting a silvery colour by her pupil, before becoming a tea green, much like a pair of fake contacts.  
Looking away from his gaze, Violet swung her Scythe to the sand, lodging it in the sand. Hugging her elbow to her body, she played with a ribbon on her dress again.  
"We won't find it standing around… I know your upset but can we please just go back to the fort? Your tantrum could really-." Kuro started his speech again, and Violet spun around. Swinging her arm around, she went into a flurry of sign.  
["There is no way in hell I am going back to the Fortress! I am not ready to lead people! My Father made me…"] She hesitated a moment, and the two stood standing still under the night moonlight, looking at each other. Sniffing, Violet sobbed silently. ["He made me this against my will. I never said yes, I never knew what he was doing-!"]  
"Madame Violet! Madame! Calm down, it's hard to understand what your saying-."  
She screamed at the top of her lungs in rage for his inability to read her sloppy sign, and turned. Yanking her Scythe from the sand, she pulled the strap around her, and stomped off growling. She could feel Kuro hovering close by, probably letting her blow steam off, she was not sure. They moved back into the thick woodland area, down south towards Heartwood. As the minutes passed, the sounds of light rain began to pitter patter on the tops of the trees. Violet took deeper breaths, letting the cold sweep over her as droplets of rain fell from above and onto her soft and brown hair. A snap sounded above them all of a sudden, and she cried out. Ducking and throwing herself to the base of a tree, she snatched at her legs and curled into a small ball.  
"Harbinger!" Her guard's voice cut through the chill the ran down her spin, and Violet jerked to the grass as a smooth and warm touch came to her bare arm.  
"Madame Violet! Are you alright?!"  
She was frozen in shock, her nerves so shot he couldn't get through to her. Shivering, she looked up from under her arms.  
"Madame... are you alright...?" Kuro's cool voice rolled over her cheek and she jerked forward as another crack of lightening almost made her heart burst.  
"No~!" Shoving him to the dirt, she jumped to her feet and ran into the foliage. A crack of lightning set a nearby tree on fire, making Violet screech and cling to a tree. Sliding to the grass, she shook violently, cupping her hands over her ears.  
goawaygoawaygoawaygoaway...  
A hesitant touch made her jump, much warmer than the more heavy rainfall drenching her from above. Swinging her head up, she muttered.  
"Itwasn'tmyfault..."  
"Madame? Did you just... speak...?"  
Violet looked at him, blank faced and not answering.  
"Come. We are going back to Wynter."  
Violet felt a tug pull her up, and she shrugged him off as he tried to support her. Wobbling, she moved aimlessly through the woods as the rain lessened and the thunder and lightning ceased.  
The glow of torches made Violet begin a jog, as the Harbinger and Reaper stepped from the forest onto a chiseled stone road. The horse riders slowed as Violet slowed to a walk. Her knee high sollerets clinked as she stood up straighter, regaining her composure. The riders were garbed in mythril chain mail, and the horses were armored with quartz and silver; soldiers from the Wynter Fortress in the Northern Snowy Sands. They were riding away from it.  
"I-Is that Harbinger Nakova?!"  
"HARBINGER, UNDEAD ATTACK WYNTER!"  
The two riders trotted around them, and the quieter of the two slide off his horse. "Miss, Undead led by Ghouls have attacked the gates. The farmlands on the outer mountain lands are being overwhelmed!"  
"Ma'am, you NEED to return. "  
Violet felt the need to collapse, to fall asleep and let their words fly over her head. She didn't want to lead.  
Why won't they get it?!  
"Madame. "  
Her thoughts snapped to Kuro, and she looked over her shoulder. She cocked her head to the side inquisitively.  
"We need to help. People will die- more than if you don't. "  
Violet tuned back to the soldiers, and stepped towards the riderless horse. She closed her eyes.  
I have to. Its what she should have wanted done.  
The horse dipped down as she swung herself into the saddle, and Violet felt Kuro leap on behind her.  
The wind cut at her exposed skin as they raced towards the glows on the frozen night in front of them.


	3. Memory Three- Soul and Body

Hi everybody. My name is Cloud, and welcome to my story. I didn't really write a response because i didn't feel like there was much need to but i have a few things to say. I wrote this story because I felt that a lot of other fan fictions had really weird story lines or they just based their story off of someone elses. So i decided to revamp a story me and my friend had been working on quite a while back; i was working on this a while back, but it was a little disorganized. Anyway- thank you Bladed Raptor for the reviews so far, as well as Lunacora, and i hope you all enjoy the story.

/

Violet pulled on the reigns of the horse, as they reached the top of the peak leading downhill in a chiseled, marble stone pathway. She could feel Kuro wrap his arms around her, and Violet felt her heart rate spike.

"Harbinger! We have the main gate already under our control but Ghouls keep slipping in with their fiendish creatures- Reaper Katz led a force to the mountains- where the Ghouls keep coming from!"

Nodding to the two men on horseback as they slowed to a stop a few seconds behind them, the paling blackness of night began to warm Violet as the air grew less chilly.

No! Miao is…

Pulling the reins in fear induced worry, she kicked the horse's side once, lightly, making it startled and begin a charge. Gripping the cold leather tightly, she didn't feel the lack of warmth and focused on the only person whom she had begun to relate to. The snow covered grasses provided little challenge for the horse, and Violet gasped as the snow began to pelt her. Leaning forward as the horse picked up more speed, she pushed onward, and felt Kuro rope his arms around her waist tighter, even though he was much taller than her.

I need to get to her; if she dies because of me…

The glow of red on white made Violet jerk back on the reins. The horse snorted, but slowed to a stop.

No…

The house was already too far gone to save even if the fire was put stared in horror at the bodies lying scorched on the snow, lying on the road towards their destination; the mountains. Sliding out of the saddle clumsily, she thumped to the pillow snow below her.

"Madame?" Kuro was at her side in a second, but she pushed his arm away as he tried to help her.

Staring into the snow, she felt her eye twitch, just a bit.

If only I hadn't tried to run away… these innocent village farmers…

Looking up through tears, Violet sniffed once.

One is alive, girl. Feed your urges.

She fell to the ground sideways, as the world began to turn around her like a ballerina in a music box. She didn't stop Kuro from helping her up this time, and slowly told him…

["One is still alive…"] Shrugging from his hold, she moved towards the burnt corpses she thought were all lifeless. But the smell of the dying was unmistakable. She honed in on the lone survivor.

Almost emotionlessly, she knelt beside the body. She doubted anyone else could have told, but she could smell the remnants of perfume; it was a woman that survived. Her stomach suddenly growled, and Violet bit her lip to keep herself under control.

You must… she will die regardless…

Shaking her head once, the weary and broken girl reached forward. She could feel the dying warmth of the woman; practically taste her blood in the air and smell the sweet aroma of a loosely anchored soul. Placing a hand on the crisped skin and shirt, she felt a barely beating heart.

"Please… make… it st-... stop… make it… stop… the pain…" The woman breathed in agony, staring up at the sky, charred and hairless. "Harbinger… please…kill me…"

Violet's eyes widened, and she shook her head.

I can't! Not that…

Tears fell on to the dying lady's chest, but Violet never noticed.

"Allow me, madame-."

The Harbinger of Wynter swung her gaze to the bodyguard. ["No. Don't touch her blood or her soul."]

"But if we don't do anything, she will suffer, and then die. And her soul will be left to wander until it becomes a Ghast. Do you really want that? For her?"

Squeezing her eyes shut, she shook her head to Kuro in response. She didn't want that…

Turning to the woman, Violet stood up. Equipping her Scythe in hand, she stood tall.

Forgive me.

Swinging in a blinding flash, just far enough to pierce her heart, Violet slung the Scythe out of the woman's body and into the air, letting it spin away and sink blade first into the ice and snow. Falling to her knees, she reached forward, and placed a hand over the hole. Squeezing her eyes shut, Violet bit her bottom lip, desire racking her ribs and drying her throat. Pulling up just a little, a small wisp of sorts, a silver much like the tinges of her hair, dangled as she held it by one of its flames. Licking her lips, she groaned. Her breath became short and she felt her mouth open a little.

"M'lady."

Freezing, her eyes widened. Pulling her head back inches from the soul, she yanked a dark teal bottle from her waist bow, and let the small orb roll down the neck of the oddly made container and into the near empty flask. Corking it, she tucked it back into her large bow, and stood up.

"Madame, are you alright? You aren't a Reaper. Resisting the temptations can be even more than dangerous; fatal, you know." Kuro's worried expression was easy to see even with his scarf on, and Violet sighed, walking over to her Scythe. Yanking it from the snow, she turned to Kuro.

Moving her Scythe under her arm, she signed.

[" We need to hurry. Leave the horses. We have to run."]

Fixing her Scythe, she held the weapon as if it were apart of her, and took off in a blinding dash, towards the mountains. The snow picked up again as they reached the mountain pass, and Kuro easily found the remnants of a fresh battle field. The path was snowed over and feet off from the plowed pathway- blood stained the snow and a discarded torch near the cave entrance was the only thing that showed that people were still possibly nearby. Violet stepped forward, her sollerets clicking on the frozen stone floor. Not bothering to look at the ground, she slid forward, moving deeper into the caverns. She could barely sense Kuro, but he was faithful- just behind her. Low light vision helped as they staggered deeper into the darkness.

The cold began to nip at her thighs as her dress was styled to look ripped, leaving her left thigh slightly exposed. A gust of wind sliced towards her.

Eyes wide, she swung her Scythe from her holding position slightly behind her, and the stone sparked as the blade scraped across it. The ice shattered against her weapon, the enchantments on the relic protecting her. But the force of the attack sent her skidding backwards. Falling to a knee, she felt Kuro jump over her, and saw the flash of his blades as he moved to protect her.

Violet felt her chest warm itself, before she stood to her feet, eyes narrowing. Dashing around him, she pulled back her Scythe, breathing in deeply while jumping and pushing off the wall beside her. Vaulting towards the figure, she could smell the stench of rotting skin and a darker presence. Passing the figure in the darkness, she fell to a crouch. The blade caught hold of the body behind her, and Violet mercilessly pulled forward, slicing the waist clean from the rest of the body.

The flicker of a tainted soul, shaded pink in its bluish-white, illuminated the cavern as it, undeciding still, bobbed above its corpse. The shadow that clung to the soul shrank back as Violet swung her Scythe free of blood and slid it back into her bow.

Reaching forward with both hands, she felt her stomach growl.

Taste it. The Soul is corrupted- it can't be saved. Do it… do it…

Cupping the soul between her hands, feeling her stomach ache and growl, yearning for a substance she refused to feed on, and in front of her chest, words, garbled and butchered, escaped her lips in whispers. Releasing it, expecting her trick to not work a seventh time, she saw the tainted soul pulse a thankful pure blueish light. Plucking it from the air, she dropped it in with the others in her flask, and sighed, feeling the fatigue overcome her.

Placing a hand on the nearby wall, she felt a hand gently pat her shoulder. Looking to Kuro, Violet was surprised to see that her collected souls were not hidden by the bow, and glowing just bright enough for her to identify the blood rolling down his mouth. She could see his whole face- and the fact that he had fed on the blood of their enemy.

["So. You use the blood of a foe."] Motioning with her hands, she was surprised Kuro could read it so clearly.

"Yes. It isn't as taxing on the mind like it is when you have fed on a soul. Eating someone's essence and destroying them forever is a terrifying concept. Better to let the soul wander until they can find peace and rebirth than to do…" He trailed off, realizing he was speaking of Violet's initial prefered choice. "Er. Sorry. I was rambling."

["It is fine."] Drawing her Scythe from her back again, she moved onward. Their footsteps were almost completely silent, until the sounds of fighting echoed down the caves. Violet recognized one of the voices. Running down further, she stopped on the edge of an opening. As the morning light nearly blinded them at first, blankets of snow became visible, rolling down into an open field, green and lush. Figures danced across the grass and snow, locked in battle.

A black haired young woman, seventeen and around the same height as Violet- five feet and two and a half inches, leapt around two figures, swinging two chain whips in flashy arches.

Miao. Thank the Aether you are alright.

Two other Reapers were engaging a rather large Ghoul, and Violet spotted three Aether Knights, heavy platinum and titanium armor stained with blood, engaging another two Ghouls. Leaping, she skidded down the snow covered hill, trying to maintain her balance. Kuro was a few feet behind her until a force sent her off her feet. The world was suddenly a blur, spinning around and round, until she slammed into the snow on her back, forced down by a Ghoul. The possessed Human had graying skin- stretched tight and stinking, deformed tongue wriggling centimeters above her face. Growling, she kicked at its stomach wildly.

Her eyes widened with shock as pain lanced from her stomach to her spine. Gasping, she flailed wildly, and punched the Ghoul hard enough that it's head made a cracking noise. Clawing at the snow as the Ghoul rolled a few feet away, stunned, she looked for her Scythe in the white, vast field.

Violet did see a streak of black sail over her, and cleave the Ghoul. It screeched once, before batting Kuro into the air, farther uphill. Scrambling back to the place where she lost her hold on the Scythe, she finally spotted the mythril coloured bar and blade, and grabbed for it.

The roar of the wounded Ghoul struck a chord in her, and she swung the Scythe backwards as a pressure came to her ankle.

The Ghoul was pinned, head attached to the Scythe and ground. Struggling up, Violet winced, as she reached for the soul which needed her cleansing touch. Looking to her chest, where her corset was loose, she took notice of the shard of ice that was leeching the warmth from her blood. Yanking it free, she hissed, biting her lip until she drew blood. Looking up, she yelped, pulling her Scythe up and blocking the new Ghoul's attack. Rolling back in the snow, she tumbled backwards to her feet, and slid to a stop. Looking up in anger, she spotted the large Ghoul, panting and growling. Kuro bounded past her, and, drawing two long daggers, rolled under one of the demon possessed mage's attacks, and slashed.

The pulse sent Kuro spiraling away, and Violet dug her weapon in the snow to keep herself in place. Groaning, she pulled her Scythe from the powdery snow, and dashed forward. Rushing the Ghoul, who dwarfed her size by a whole nother foot, she leapt straight at it, spinning sideways in a three hundred and sixty arch, and sliced the man's out stretched hand. Landing in the snow a few feet away, in a crouch, Violet gasped for breath. Her hair was getting wet from the snow and her perspiration made her somewhat heated in her dress.

The Ghoul roared, and grabbed it's severed hand. Blood, clotted and abnormally dark, gushed from the wound, and made Violet's stomach growl. It pegged it's arm at her, and Violet easily blocked the detached ligament, and watched as the mage Ghoul raised it's good arm high above it's head.

"Look out, Vivi!" Miao's sudden appearance threw Violet off for a second, which was when the Ghoul's fist connected with the ground. The force of mana pulsed from the mage Ghoul, and lifted the Harbinger off her feet. Slamming into the snow with a sickening thump, Violet felt the wind get knocked from her lungs. Writhing on the floor, trying to breath, she clawed at the snow.

Kuro's voice cooed into her ear before she realized it. "Calm down and breath." He whispered.

He helped her up, and the two stood facing the demonically possessed man.

Miao danced into view, and out of view, her chain whips cutting the Ghoul into a lumpy mass of flesh as she dodged his forceful punches and gravitic magic, and was returned with a barrage of spiked barbs.

Violet turned to see the other Reapers leaving the corpses of the Ghouls, and assist the Aether Knights. Before the Harbinger, injured and bloodied, could move to assist the Human's of her Fortress, and the Reapers that were supposed to be under her guidance and surveillance, the party's leader barred her path.

"Vivi, where the heck did you go?! We've been searching everywhere for you! And then Ghouls attacked us- everything has been hectic!" Flinging herself into the snow backwards, Miao rolled about, leaving the red-ish black blood of the Ghouls behind on the previously blank white snow. "Sorry 'bout that…needed to get clean first before we really talk…"

"..." Kuro stood in silence, no emotion on his face although Violet could feel his unease and humor; see it in his posture and actions.

Looking up into her friends eyes, head tilted down, the brunette sighed. [" I… was … listen… i ran away- but do not tell anyone. I am sorry. I am here now though. Can you forgive me?"]

Miao gave her a hard look before hugging her. "Fine."

["Good."] Blushing, Violet rubbed one of her arms. ["Can you give me a summary of what our problems are?"]

Miao nodded, reading the pale small hands as they messaged Violet's thoughts in a shying and messy blur. "Well. The attack started last yesterday at noon. I don't know all the details because it started right at the fortress' maingate- south right?- Yes, but I was there when the real fighting started. There were about a hundred of these damned things. They were vicious. And worse. They were ripping people apart where they stood. I saw… ravaged… woman, dead in the streets… we pushed them back through the gates, and shut them- archers kept them off the walls. But the farmlands were at risk… we chased them through here with TNT ready to seal up the caverns but when we came out on this side…"

Miao sniffed, trailing off. Kuro's small exhale did not escape her hearing, and Violet turned towards her bodyguard.

"I… I need to speak with Reapers Jaral and Rie. I'll… be back shortly…" Miao staggered off, a worried look on her face. Violet turned her head, and watch Kuro study his fellow Reaper as she limped a little, moving to the other two of their allies. The boy turned to her.

"The Ghouls seem to have been getting more and more reckless. Either that or smart. It would be a s- Harbinger Nakova, are you… bleeding?"

["No, don't touch me. I am fine-."]

Kuro ducked to the side, and Violet yipped as his warm hand gently pressed on her wound, and she backpedaled. Cheeks reddening and her heart begin to race, she hissed.

["I said no!"]

"Madame. You need to let me see the wound. I am meant to guard you. If i should have failed- and i believe i did- and you are hurt or worse, i must help you in any way i can." Kuro gave her a bland, but demanding face, and she sighed. She hissed through her teeth as his hand gently prodded the hole in her front.

"Vi- Madame, you need to drink a soul or two. Either that or blood. And you're lucky your dress has that protection II enchant. It stopped that one Ghouls attack. What was it? "

["No. I will live without doing such things."] Slumping against Kuro, tired, Violet sighed, watching her breath roll out and condensate, before evaporating up towards the peaking sun over the mountains ahead. ["It was… an ice spear i think…"]

"What am i going to do with you…" Her guard sighed, before one of the anonymous Aether Knights burying the corpses of the dead motioned to them, approaching. Violet pushed off of Kuro lightly, and stood tall.

"Ma'am." The suited man saluted, slapping his fist over his heart, and dipping his head in a half bow. "I must speak to you."

["Do you know sign?"]

"Can you translate, Reaper?"

"Alright… she asked if you knew sign."

"No." The figure unbelted his helmet, and a brown faced young man, possibly from one of the desert cities that were ungoverned, in Sacred, gave Violet a small smile. "We have news for you. The lead Reaper here calls you the Harbinger, correct?"

["Yes."] Violet resisted raising an eyebrow. All the Aether Knights stationed in Wynter, the domain she was in charge of protecting, had seen her at the inaugural session.

Kuro spoke her reply for her.

"Good. Well, I must speak to you urgently. It is about the safety of your fortress and farmlands, and also of you. News which must be sent to the leader of the Harbingers as well."

Kuro stepped in front of her, drawing one of his long daggers.

"You are no Aether Knight. Why do you dress in borrowed armor?"

"Because the Temple has ties to the Dragoons, and the Dragoons are not very welcome in the United Knight's territory. I'm afraid keeping up the charade was necessary to be able to get to Wynter in time." The young man sounded grave, his face growing darker as he spoke.

Violet stepped forward, pulling Kuro's sword arm down and away from the boy. ["Tell us your name"]

"What is your name, Dragoon?" Kuro spoke with little emotion, staying in front of Violet, standing defiantly before a stranger whom he could not hold at bay, due to his leader's actions to stop him.

"It is Sova. Sova, the one with wisdom. These two are with me as well. But i am not the only leader. All three of us are, in some form, leaders in the Temple and the Dragoons." The boy stepped sideways in the snow, letting the two thought Knights carefully approach, hands away from their empty sword hilts. The freshly made graves behind them were marked with holy longswords of the Aether Knights. Two more helmets hit the snow, and one of the more bulkier armored Knights stepped closer, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Hello. I am Ferrik; leader of the Temple of Lit's armed Forces." His olive green, dark hair was barely in a clean cut, begin to overgrow and sway over his eyes. The silver orbs that watched Violet made her tense a bit.

["Wait. He means the… leader of the Temple itself? The Temple Temple?"]

"Yes-." Ferrik cut off Kuro as the bodyguard opened his mouth to speak. Keeping his armored boots planted in the snow, he ignored Kuro's narrowing eyebrows.

The sunlight grew warm, a golden brown, and the winds that began to chill Violet because of her snow sodden dress, began to grow warm again.

"I am the leader of the Temple. And I can read your sign just fine. We had an old higher ranked member that used to sign, but sadly, she is no longer with us."

["And what is so important that you have traveled so far to tell me?"]

"Direct and to the point; i like that!" The grown man gave a throaty laugh, throwing his head back. Eyes gleaming, he sighed with a bitter contempt, before getting serious again. "It has come to my attention that you are Harken's daughter, correct?"

Violet nodded, and ignored the strand of her hair float from her bangs, and stop down between her nose and left eye.

["Yes. I am."]

"Good. We couldn't contact him at the Heart of the Fire, and Desmond will not hold counsel with anyone- the Elves have been taking up all his time when the Ghouls aren't."

["So you want me to relay a message to him, through me."]

"Something like that, yes." Ferrik combed a hand through his hair, before stepping back with one foot, and looking up at the sky. The side of his face was speckled with some blood, like his armor was, creating a look which made him seem even more legendary. But, as Violet watched his facial expression, something made her feel easy.

["What is it?"]

The man looked down, before the third figure moved next to him, and Miao and her two Reaper companions stepped to the sid,finally returning from their small "talk" in the caves. Violet heard Miao mutter a 'what's goin' on?', but she chose to ignore it.

"Well." The boy's armor was cracked in places, and his Halberd was something she hadn't seen before. His rusty red hair struck a chord in her, as if she had seen him somewhere before. "The Ghouls have been getting smarter, as your Reaper said earlier."

"And you are…?" Kuro muttered just loud enough for the small group to hear.

"You can call me… Kalev. Kalev Puresol. That's besides the point though. What matters now is that two forts in Sacred have gone silent. And our investigations have showed once again that they are empty and war stricken." His mitch matched eyes were too familiar, left iris a green, and right iris a red.

["Once again?"]

"The past isn't important. But the party in charge of investigating ran into something. Something wrong- at Lior."

Ferrik, who was silent, still standing next to Kalev, grunted, and Sova whispered something that Violet couldn't quite understand.

["... what did you say?"] Moving her hands rapidly, chilled all of a sudden due to the odd actions of the men in front of her. Sova shook his head, refusing to answer as he turned his shoulder towards her. Violet dug a heeled solleret down into the snow and grass, frustration eating at her emotions. ["What was-"]

The winds picked up a little, and the sun broke free of the clouds overhead, producing a beautiful golden sheen that almost blinded everyone looking at the snow. The serene setting was near quiet save for the heavy breathing of those who had just been fighting for their lives.

"It was a Wraith."

Violet turned her head to look at the boy called Kalev. Their gazes locked, and her half lidded eyes grew wide as alarm and fear triggered in her gut; her mind reacting to the memories of the creatures she was created to fight against and overcome.

The serene setting was off shot, the ambiance dipping to a gray disparity. Violet didn't want to blink. She didn't want the memories of carcasses to come back to her mind. But either way, Wraith was fresh in her mind.

And no one can escape their own thoughts. No matter how long they chose to forget it.


End file.
